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Saturday, July 2, 2011

He wanted to be her protector again and more…her lover. But he could detect reluctance on her part though he knew she wanted him to kiss her by the way she stared at his lips.
They weren’t children anymore, so why was he hesitating? It
went back to the uneasy feeling he didn’t know all he should about
her. Relax, he told himself. Give her time.

Get the ebook for only $1.99 this weekend at:AmazonNookAstraea Press (all formats)A bit about the book:Do you have someone in your past you would like to reconnect with? Caroline Davis White wasn't looking for Mickey, now Mike Foster, her childhood crush, she was fleeing her philandering husband, seeking peace and quiet, time to reflect on changing her life. But there was Mike, saving her from a mishap...again, bigger than life and even more handsome.

A well-known artist, Sunny thought she could escape, disappear back to the cabin where she spent her summers as a child. But she was wrong. Her husband refused to let her go. There hadn't been a divorce in Brad White's family...ever! And he wasn't about to start breaking the tradition now. Could Caroline shake him loose and what about Mike? Where did he fit into her

Here's an excerpt of my work-in-progress called "The List", showing how the story got it's title:

The next night he went out to dinner with his sister, Jenna. She was two years younger than Grey and engaged to be married. She was a teacher and came to New York City to shop for a wedding dress. He took her to a nice French restaurant, Grey had a good day in the stock market and wanted to treat his baby sister to a great dinner.

Jenna sipped her wine.

“How are you feeling about…uh…getting married?” He asked her.

“Great! Bill is everything I’ve always wanted in a man,” Jenna cooed.

“Is he a good listener?”

She nodded.

“A good provider?”

“He makes a good salary as corporate counsel for the bank.”

“And…in the sack…?” Grey asked, embarrassing himself.

“Grey! That’s none of your business…what we do in private. Honestly!”

“I know, but are you…ah, compatible?”

“What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean, Jenna. Stop playing with me,” Grey insisted.

“If you would stop asking such a personal question…”

“Compatible…like you both want it the same all the time, uh, most of the time.”

“Grey! I can’t believe you asked me that.”

“Are you?”

“I’m not going to answer. Why are you asking me these, personal questions? It’s not like you,” Jenna said.

“We had a ‘Four Horsemen’ meeting two nights ago.”

“You mean with Will, Spence and Bobby?”

He nodded.

“And?”

“They were talking about their wives…complaining actually, each about different things and I’ve been thinking. I wouldn’t want to trade places with any of them. I used to think they had it all…great jobs, great women, now I’m not so sure.”

“You don’t want to fall into the same trap?”

“Each one had a separate complaint, a completely different thing bugging him about his wife. Three big things.”

“One of them was s-e-x?”

“Spence. Not getting enough. I wouldn’t want to have to beg my wife to sleep with me,” Grey said, picking up his wine glass.

“That’s why you’re asking me all these personal questions?”

“I need to know if it’s standard…after you’re together for a while…begging?”

“Did Bobby and Will complain about that?”

Grey shook his head.

“So then it’s not like that with everyone.”

“Translation, you and Bill are sexually compatible. You don’t make him beg?”

“Only if he’s been a bad boy,” she laughed.

“Jenna! Get serious.”

“How can I? This is ridiculous. Do you even have someone you’re considering marrying?”

“Not yet, but I will. I plan to. Things are going well for me now and soon I’ll be in a position to have a new life, one with room for a regular woman.”

“A regular woman? I’d hate to think of you with an irregular woman,” she snickered.

“Jenna! You know what I mean.”

“Andrews family bachelor is thinking about settling down. That is news.”

“Let’s begin with the way I solve almost every problem in my life…with a list,” she said, digging in her purse for a pen.

“I’m not into lists…it’s a girl thing.”

“Do you want my help or not?” She asked him, pulling a small pad of paper out of her purse.

He nodded, then waved his hand for her to continue.

“Okay. Three guys. Three frustrated husbands. Three wifely flaws. First one?” She asked looking at him.

“Bobby complained that his gorgeous, sexy-as-hell wife wouldn’t listen to him. She thought his legal work was boring. I want to be able to talk to my wife about whatever business I’m in, whether she had big boobs or not,” he said, breaking into a grin.

Jenna gave him a dirty look.

“Number one, she should be smart. Able to talk and listen,” Jenna said, writing, “next?’

“Will said his wife is spending all his money on decorators and cooks yet he doesn’t have a house he is comfortable in. The guy holes up in a den, smallest room in his giant house, because Vicky’s decorated the whole house in white and it gets dirty…or something like that.”

“Translating Will’s problem into a wish…for your wish list.”

“Not a wish list. This is a ‘must-have’ list.”

“All right, so how do you translate Will’s dilemma into a quality you want?”

“Hmmm. Not so easy.”

“A homemaker?”

“Sort of. I’m not looking for Betty Crocker here…someone who can manage a household, I guess…and create a nice but comfortable home for me, since I’m pretty stupid at that. Does that work?” He asked.

“A woman who can decorate a house without bankrupting you and can cook a decent meal,” Jenna said, scribbling on the pad.

Grey nodded his head in agreement.

“The third thing…Spence?” Jenna asked.

“This one is important. No begging for sex.”

“Sexually compatible, right?”

“More than that.”

“How so?”

“She’s gotta want it as much as I do. I don’t want a woman who turns her head and says, ‘okay go ahead’, I want one who is eager for it…for me…who wants…I can’t discuss this with you, Jenna,” Grey said, blushing.

“Write this last one yourself. I’m putting down sexually compatible, whatever that means to you. Please don’t explain it to me. Okay?” Jenna asked, tearing a sheet of paper from the pad.

He smiled a wicked grin and agreed with her.

“Here is your list. Memorize it. Every time you go out with a woman, you look for these three things,” Jenna advised, stuffing the paper in his breast pocket.

“What about honesty? Sense of humor? Looks?”

“Those are important traits, especially the first two. I assume everyone has to have those to get to the second date with you anyway.The list is for more than two or three dates. Use it when you consider spending a lot of time with a woman. That’s when the list kicks in. I gotta go,” she said, looking at her watch.

“Thank you, Jenna,” he said, kissing his sister on the cheek.

“You may think it’s silly but women make lists…all women have a list they use on men, too, a list just like yours. Use it, Grey. I hope it helps you find the woman you’re looking for.”

“Me, too,” he said, getting up and walking out of the restaurant with his sister.

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Easy quiz this week, state capitals! Can you name the state for each capital shown?

1) Carson City2) Albany3) Pierre4) Tallahassee5) Bismark

Okay, okay, don't brag how well you did, can you name the capitals for these states?

6) Ohio
7) Maine
8) Utah
9) Wisconsin
10) Illinois

Answers1) Nevada
2) New York
3) South Dakota
4) Florida5) North Dakota

6) Columbus
7) Bangor
8) Salt Lake city9) Madison
10) Springfield

How well did you do? Leave a comment.

CONTEST NEXT WEEK!

Want to receive the first chapter of "Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights" free? Send me an email atsunnydaysbook@gmail.com and I'll send it off to you pronto.

A little bit about Sunny Days, Moonlit Nights Did you have a mad crush on someone when you were 13? What would it be like to reconnect with him when you were 33? Caroline Davis White wasn't looking for Mickey, now Mike Foster, her childhood crush, she was fleeing her philandering husband, seeking peace and quiet, time to reflect on changing her life. But there was Mike, saving her from a mishap...again, bigger than life and even more handsome.

A well-known artist, Sunny thought she could escape, disappear back to the cabin where she spent her summers as a child. But she was wrong. Her husband refused to let her go. There hadn't been a divorce in Brad White's family...ever! And he wasn't about to start breaking the tradition now. Could Caroline shake him loose and what about Mike? Where did he fit into her life?

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Tuesday Tales continue today. Join me and J.F. Jenkins, another Astraea Press authors as we write short stories to a word prompt. The prompt this week is "doctor". To read the full stories, click on the author's name or scroll down for my story, "Mint Chip".

When Clint and Nina reached the kitchen, he ushered her to a tall stool while he assembled the ingredients for dinner.

“Frozen margaritas, first?”

She nodded.

“These were to make you pliable,” he said, switching on the blender.

“Pliable?”

“To make my seduction easier.”

“You planned to seduce me?”

“Seems silly now, doesn’t it?”

“I think it’s charming,” she said, giving him a kiss.

While they were sipping their drinks, Clint crumbled gorgonzola cheese on thick slices of peasant bread.

“Heating this on the grill as an appetizer. Don’t want to get you totally drunk on the first drink…then pasta pesto with grilled sausage, salad…and, of course, dessert!”

“You are pulling out all the stops. This isn’t necessary, Clint. I mean…seduction accomplished.”

“This was my seduction dinner. I figured after a gourmet meal and a couple of double-strength margaritas, you’d fall into bed with me.”

“Fouled you up, I guess.”

“Fell into bed without the dinner!” He said, grinning.

Nina laughed and took another sip, enjoying the effect of the drink.

“I was a pushover.”

“An amazing pushover…please! All the more reason to cook for you.”

“No argument.”

“Are you hungry?”

“Ravenous…”she said, giving him a wicked grin.

Clint moved around the kitchen with confidence, stopping on the way to the refrigerator to kiss Nina, pinch her bottom or cup a breast. She sat back watching him create, feeling wooed, courted…it took her back to her twenties when she was eagerly sought after, being a charming and beautiful young woman.

The table was set for two on the deck with beautiful cloth placemats. There were fresh flowers and a candle in a glass hurricane to keep it from blowing out. Clint brought the grilled bread with the melted cheese out and they sat down to eat. The meal was delicious, with every dish cooked to perfection.

She wiped her mouth with her napkin and took a sip of Moscato, a new favorite wine she discovered through Clint.

“Glad you like it. It’s seduction dinner number 37. We’ll see if it works for round two.”

“You have doubts?”

“With women I never know. I’ve been wrong before.”

“Not this time, Iron Chef,” she said, her eyes glistening.

He grinned at her and her heart melted. His smile was a little lopsided, his brown hair mussed from making love and the gentle breeze on the deck. His amber eyes seemed to be glowing gold in the dusky light, dancing with the flame of the candle. Never had she seen a more handsome man.

His big hand covered hers as his thumb wrapped under her palm. Her gaze dropped to his chest which was shirtless on the warm summer night and her fingertips tingled at the thought of touching him again. He saw her staring and a wicked grin spread over his face.

“Thinking about dessert again?”

Nina blushed to be caught in the act. She nodded.

“Before we go upstairs for ‘seconds’, I have another dessert for you.”

Clint went into the kitchen and left Nina to sit outside. She looked up at the night sky, finding a star and making a wish. The smell of freshly cut grass mingled with the scent of flowers growing in Clint’s garden. He was as good a gardener as she was bad. Cucumbers and tomatoes in the salad came from his garden. Crickets and frogs created a symphony while fireflies provided a light show. The night was magical.

Clint returned with one hand behind his back.

“Before we adjourn for our…um…other dessert, let’s have this.”

He whipped out a bowl with two scoops of ice cream and two spoons. Nina looked in the bowl and started laughing.

“I can’t believe it…mint chip!”

“That’s right…from The Creamery, too.”

He took her hand and led her over to the rocking chair in the corner on the deck. He sat down and situated her in his lap while she held the bowl. She slipped one spoon on the table. They fed each other ice cream, licking off the spoon and each other’s lips.

The cold, sweet dessert shared intimately between them started a new fire inside Nina. She put her hand on his chest and slid it up and down, caressing him lovingly. Gazing up into his eyes, she saw her desire was returned.

“Prescription for the cure for loneliness…go next door, take one Clint…twice and call me in the morning,” she said.

He looked into her eyes, smiling back at her.

“So I’m just what the doctor ordered, eh?”

“Oh, you so are…you so are, sweetheart.”

He stood up with her in his arms, stopped at the table for her to deposit the bowl and spoon and walked toward the stairs, switching out the kitchen lights on the way.